In addition to their other rotating monthly collections, the Criterion Channel often has one that focuses on a particular actor. This month it is Vicky Krieps. She such a fine actor, so it's nice to see more of her movies. I think the only one of her films I had seen previously is Bergman Island, which I'll definitely be watching again (so prepare for that addition). The other night I watched her in Emily Atef's 2022 film More Than Ever. Krieps plays Helene, a woman who is dying from a rare lung condition, and also stars Gaspard Ulliel, in one of his last roles, as her husband Matthieu, who is trying to help/understand. She decides to head off to Norway to stay at the cottage of a stranger, Mister (Bjorn Floberg), that she met online. Matthieu eventually tracks her down there, trying to convince her to come back home for treatment, and she has other ideas. I found it very impactful, and not simply because of the fine performances and the stunning scenery. There are times when I think I'm, in addition to many other perfectly valid reasons, going to Europe to just fade away on my own terms. I think that Cary Grant and Great Garbo stopped acting and giving interviews because they wanted their fans to remember them as they were and not what age was turning them into. I'm "slightly" less famous and beloved than Grant or Garbo, but maybe I'd just like my friends to remember me as I was and not this increasingly crippled wreck (this also explains why I don't want any public celebrations of my retirement, obviously). The Italians or Portuguese will only know me as this, and will simply abide me and not pity me. There are times when I think I won't come back at all, but instead send plane tickets to Gary and Ali to come visit. I doubt it it will reach that level, but it is something I think about. I'm not going to go kill myself or anything that self-absorbed, because, despite the constant pain, I love life too much and am looking forward to what comes next, but I completely understood Helene's desire to be left in Norway to face her end on her terms. Anyway, More Than Ever is heartily recommended.
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